'I can imagine,' Sophie agreed. 'Have you tried smells? Sometimes they bring back very strong memories. You can take my essential oils if you like, and try a few drops of one on a handkerchief under your pillow at night to see if that brings up anything.'

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

Biggles stayed a little longer. He thought Sophie was giving off rather mixed signals and he wasn't sure whether she wanted him to stay or go. Then he wondered if someone wanted Sophie to make him stay but she herself didn't. Biggles decided to go home, but that he would kiss her goodnight where a watcher might see and that should make all involved happy.

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

Sophie tried quite hard to make Biggles stay longer but he insisted on going. On the doorstep he turned, cupped her face with his hand and thanked her for the night before leaning in to meet her lips with his own.

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

As Biggles walked home, mulling over the situation, he had another flash of memory. This time it was from WW2, and concerned perfume with the side-affect of ... then he lost the track. What he did remember prompted him to make another note to ask Algy a question or three, and ask for the essential oils in Sophie's mixture to be tested.

Cautiously, in the safety of his bedroom, Biggles sniffed the essential oil blend Sophie had given him. It had a herby smell, pleasant and rather like the herb omelette he had had recently in a French restaurant. Impulsively, Biggles splashed a few drops on his hanky and pushed it under his pillow.

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

No, he could remember who had been there with him and snatches of conversation; odd jokes and stories about acqaintances. Biggles settled down to pursue these fragments and use them as stepping stones to others.

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

Le Coq an Vin. Biggles had remembered the name of the cafe he had visited so often by morning. That was the plus side. The downside was that he could still taste the herb mixture he'd been smelling all night as he ate his marmalade and toast.

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'

'No, they're not,' Algy confirmed. 'What was that herby smell seeping from your room last night? It smelled just like the stuff they used to put in the omlettes at that cafe we used to go to in France.'

'Major Bigglesworth' said Von Stalhein coldly, 'there are times when I seriously wonder if you were created by the devil just to annoy me.'